


invisible string

by drmroses



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Christmas, First Dates, Fluff, Ice Skating, M/M, Magic, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:20:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28229055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drmroses/pseuds/drmroses
Summary: “Where are you taking me?”“That's for me to know and you to find out.” Donghyuck muttered, his brows drawn together. Hell, he didn't even know where they were going.Or rather, a first date of sorts; a fluttering of hearts against secret glances.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Lee Donghyuck | Haechan
Comments: 8
Kudos: 41
Collections: NCTV Secret Santa 2020





	invisible string

**Author's Note:**

  * For [souzu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/souzu/gifts).



> title from invisible string by taylor swift

Donghyuck could never resist the cafe in between the library and his campus. There had always been something alluring to it, something so fresh and dear to his heart— 

—”So you’ve come to flirt with our barista again?” Drawled Jaemin, who raised a single eyebrow. Donghyuck scowled. He had hoped that Jaemin wouldn’t be working today. Like a puppy with a chew toy, he refused to let go of any secret he could manage to catch a whiff of.

Donghyuck crossed his arms over his chest defensively. “Just be glad I’m giving you business. Aren’t you supposed to treat your customers with respect?” He questioned. 

Jaemin chuckled. “He’s working at the first cash register; just be sure to ask him out before Christmas. I have a bet with Chenle.”

Donghyuck scoffed. Who said he was going to ask Renjun out? Why couldn’t he just have a quiet infatuation?

“Donghyuck!” Renjun clapped his hands together. “Are you here for your usual?” Birds chirped in Donghyuck’s ears. He couldn’t see anyone else. Renjun’s eyes seemed to bore into his. He gulped. This was his chance.

He leaned over the counter; his heart seemed to beat faster and faster with every millisecond spent in the close vicinity of Renjun. “Yes please. But add one thing to the check: a date with you.”

Renjun took one look at Donghyuck—innocently grinning, face ready for approval—and burst out laughing. 

“Nice one. Who put you up to this? Chenle, Jaemin?” Donghyuck didn’t bother to reply. He began to realize, with sinking suspicion, that Renjun would never understand what he meant. He fidgeted. Right. His wistful thinking would get him nowhere.

“You know, we should really get Chenle and Jaemin a new hobby from intervening in our lives.” Renjun mused. Donghyuck compartmentalized his shock. God, he felt ready to melt into his skin. What was he doing? He needed to find a way to pull this back. And then, suddenly, an idea came to his head. He gulped; he didn’t know where the ideas of courage were coming from.

“Right.” Donghyuck looked down. “But on a completely unrelated note, when are you getting off of work?”

Renjun checked the clock. “In an hour? Why?” 

Donghyuck pointed to a chair facing the counter. “I’ll be waiting.” Renjun took his credit card from him, swiped it, and gave it back with a receipt.

“Okay.” He said, voice soft. Donghyuck took it as validation. He glowed, and straightened up, going to the other counter to wait for his drink.

While waiting, Jaemin approached him again. “Scored a date?” He asked, and Donghyuck laughed. He had spent several minutes after talking with Renjun straightening his thoughts out.

“We’ll see.” He spent his time in the cafe sorting through his homework. It soothed him and his beating heart, crossing things off and adding things to a neatly listed worksheet. An hour passed like a millisecond. Donghyuck’s head was still tangled with thoughts and ideas when Renjun came up to him, an apron traded for a sweater and long winter jacket. He slipped it on; Donghyuck held the door out. 

“So,” Renjun grinned, and Donghyuck laughed in pure adrenaline. “Where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see.” Donghyuck jogged across an ice grass path; Renjun followed.

“I’ve never been this way.” He marveled. 

“You’ll see soon.” Donghyuck sounded smug. He was excited. He knew just how lovely this side of town looked to fresh eyes. In fact, it was a perfect night. Though the temperature was low, there wasn’t any precipitation. The chill in the air seemed to add an element of happiness to their chattering. In his head, he clapped his hands together manically. His plan tonight would work. There was absolutely nothing that could go wrong.

Spoken with as much intention as a bull in a china shop. On the next crosswalk, Jeno and Mark rushed towards them as Renjun waved them over. Soon enough, Donghyuck found himself surrounded by six people. 

“Were we interrupting anything?” Chenle asked in a low teasing voice. He nudged Donghyuck in the side as they made their way forward.

“Shut up.” Donghyuck grumbled. “And just be happy I’m paying for you cotton candy.” 

Chenle giggled. “So we were, huh? Hey Ren-” Donghyuck stuck his hand over Chenle’s mouth. 

“He didn’t think it was a date.” Donghyuck hissed. 

Chenle whistled. “Tough luck.”

Donghyuck let himself get tangled into plans and sweet talking. He played through carnival games, and drank far too much hot chocolate for his brain and stomach to handle. 

At the end of the night, his smile began to fade. He had showed up this afternoon, optimistic and hopeful to score a date with the love of his life. He sighed. He needed a better plan.

  
  


Try number two. Donghyuck straightened his winter jacket as much as he could. Taking a step into the coffee shop, he ducked and sat in the furthest seat from the register. He had on a set of gloves and a hat. He kept them on, though the heat was unbearable.

“Donghyuck?” Donghyuck jumped. “What are you doing here?” 

“Chenle.” He gasped. “Don’t scare me like that.” 

He dropped his voice down to a whisper. “I’m here to surprise Renjun. Jaemin told me he was closing the shop up tonight? Please don’t tell him I’m here.” 

Chenle giggled. “Well, okay. But you know you have to get something to drink if you wanna stay?”

Donghyuck passes ten dollars over. “Keep the change. Buy me something sweet please.”

Chenle narrowed his eyes. “A bribe? Perfect!” He giggled as he stormed away; Donghyuck put his face to the dirty table in shame. What was he going to do? He had walked in without a single plan. 

Ten minutes later, Chenle found Donghyuck sitting with a cap shielding his face. He snorted, passing over the drink. “Why do you have a hat on?”

“In case Renjun manages to take a look over here.” Donghyuck gripped the hat even further. “I don’t want him to see me.”

Chenle hummed. “Well, you better think of something better cause he’s coming over here right now”

Donghyuck yelped, springing into action. He brought his backpack to the left side of him, hoping it would block his body, and brought his hat even lower onto his face. Surprisingly, it worked. The sweat bristling on Donghyuck’s neck thought otherwise. 

“Are you bothering another customer, Chenle?” Renjun’s voice drew closer. Donghyuck was ready to sprint out of the store.

Chenle chuckled. “Just keeping them company.” He lifted his hands from Donghyuck’s table. “And I think I see some customers at the front, why don’t we head back that way!” 

Before he could leave, Donghyuck grabbed his sleeve.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this to you,” Donghyuck admitted. “But thank you.” 

Chenle chuckled, whistling as he bounced away.

Donghyuck checked the time; ten minutes closed. He could hear Renjun’s voice murmur across the room, dismissing other patrons. Donghyuck sat in his seat with defiance.

“Excuse me sir,” Renjun made his way over. “We’re—oh.” 

Donghyuck looked up. “Free after work?” 

“Of course. What’s the plan for today?” Renjun smiled.

“My plan…” Donghyuck tried to look as if he was thinking thoughtfully. “Hopefully for you to realize that I’ve been trying to take you on a date; and then a decent dinner after it if you enjoyed it?” 

Renjun’s breath caught in his stomach. He coughed. “Repeat that for me?”

‘What, dinner?” Donghyuck smirked.

Renjun grumbled. “You know what I meant.”

He laughed and shook his head with curiosity. “Why don’t you just repeat it back to me?” 

A moment of silence. Donghyuck held his breath and closed his eyes. All his fears thrust themselves into his thoughts.

“A date. The two of us. Together?” Donghyuck opened his eyes, and Renjun was two steps further towards his beating heart. Donghyuck watched the patches of red forming besides Renjun’s mouth; his eyes looked frantically left and right. 

He smiled. “Of course. I’ll just be waiting here for you.” 

Donghyuck took a deep breath when Renjun left. He could do this. He wouldn’t mess this up. 

As Renjun straightened the shop up, Donghyuck scrolled through his phone, texting in hopes of some sort of a saving grace. But no one could come through. By the time Renjun came back, Donghyuck had no idea of where he wanted to go. 

The pressure came on his heels as Renjun asked, “Where are you taking me?” 

“That's for me to know and you to find out.” Donghyuck muttered, his brows drawn together. He took a left first, and then a right, and another right, hoping for some sort of amusement to grow from his eyes into the streets. But the streets only seemed to grow darker. The falling snow wasn’t helping at all; surrounding the structures in white. 

His saving grace appeared in a small alleyway, so quickly that Donghyuck missed it. Only the tug from Renjun’s hand told him to look back. 

“Donghyuck, are we going ice skating?” Renjun asked, pointed to the sign in the deserted street. Donghyuck stared up at the neon glowing light. 

“Huh. Oh course.” He finally said. Turning around, he kept a tight hold on Renjun’s hand.

The arena had been decorated with strobe lights; holiday tunes blared over old loudspeakers. There was a serene sort of peace that fell on their shoulders when they entered. Donghyuck wondered if there were any other customers in the building. In a dark corner of the rink lay a misshapen fir tree.

The skates were fairly easy to come by; Donghyuck forked over a couple of dollars and grinned as they were led to the lockers. They awkwardly made their way onto the ice. Donghyuck was speechless, for once. Words flew through his brain, and he couldn’t find the right words to say. Renjun kept glancing at him; it was making him nervous. 

He sighed and tried to lift his shoulders. He needed the confidence he had on a daily basis to come back to him. Donghyuck pulled the two of them closer to the center of the rink. With no one else on the ice, Donghyuck skated back and forth, hands in Renjun’s.

“Don’t let go!” Renjun yelped, as Donghyuck drew them into tighter circles in the middle of the rink.

“Trust me for a minute?” Donghyuck asked, and Renjun nodded his head over the audience of roars.

He wedged their hands apart, watching Renjun’s eyes widen in horror. Next, he skated to the wall parallel with the door. 

“Just trust yourself!” He yelled. 

He left his hands out for Renjun to catch, skating backwards. They repeated it for a few loops around the rink; Renjun gaining confidence with every single move. 

By the end of the night, Renjun had begun to skate as fast as Donghyuck, challenging him to races.

It made Donghyuck’s heart soar, seeing Renjun with a grin on his face in exhilaration. 

  
  


The next day, Renjun recounted his date with Chenle, a permanent smile pasted on his face as they exited the cafe. Renjun had a short lunch break; Chenle had stopped by with a smile and the ability to coax the story out of Renjun.

“So where’d you guys go?” Chenle asked.

Renjun’s eyes twinkled. “I can show you! It’s right down the street, right here. I swear it was so weird how deserted the place was.” Renjun stopped abruptly in front of a wall. There was a puzzled look on his face.

“I swear…” He murmured. “It was right here!” He stomped his foot, and Chenle chuckled.

“You must have forgotten or something.” He pulled out his phone. “What was the place called?”

Renjun shook his head. “I don’t remember.” He brightened once more. “But Donghyuck is stopping by tonight! I can ask him then.”

“Donghyuck, huh?” Chenle smiled. “You know, we’ve all been waiting for the two of you to get together for nearly two years now.”

Renjun shook his head. “But we’ve known each other for barely two years.”

“We’ve all known.” Chenle said. “You guys have always been…” He trailed off. “You know, right?”

Renjun nodded. It was as if a string tied him to Donghyuck at all times; their mutual understanding held no bounds.

  
  


That night, after Donghyuck stopped by the cafe, Renjun explained the situation. Donghyuck frowned. Renjun was on a break; Donghyuck pulled his hands back into the direction of the rink. Donghyuck pointed to a secluded storefront. 

“It’s that one! I just know it is.” He pulled urgently, but his tugs faded when they stood on the sidewalk in front of the store. Renjun took a deeper look. There wasn’t a door, nor any windows. 

“But I swear..it should have been here.” Donghyuck complained. 

Renjun turned and stared at him with wide eyes. “Donghyuck,” He said slowly. “Maybe that’s the reason we were the only customers there; maybe it was magic.” His voice lifted and fell on deaf ears. 

Donghyuck laughed. “Renjun…” He sighed. “There has to be a reasonable answer.”

  
  


That night proved all of Renjun’s wishful hopes. 

He dreamt he was back in the rink. Before stepping inside, he looked at the sign, reading  _ Sleepless Ice _ . He was by himself; the employee smiled and gave him two shoes.

“Nice to see you again. We don’t tend to get repeat visitors.” Renjun tried to ask his burning question, but his mouth was clamped down. He couldn’t get a single sound out. The rink was still playing the same songs; the crumpled evergreen in the corner looked as if it would fall apart.

The moment his eyes flew open, he bounded down the street to Donghyuck’s. One look on his face, and Renjun didn’t need to ask the question sitting burning on his tongue. He could tell 

“You dreamt it too, didn’t you?” Donghyuck nodded. He had Google pulled up on his phone screen; he showed the search results to Renjun.

“It wasn’t there.” He said numbly. “The only trace I can find is of a rink from the 1900s. It closed down centuries ago.”

Renjun tugged on his sleeves excitedly. “You know what that means!”

Donghyuck groaned goodnaturedly. “Either we both managed to hallucinate the same things, or the thing about magic was right.”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this,” He admitted. “But it looks like you were right.”

With a smirk, Renjun let himself into Donghyuck’s apartment.

And thus, began the rest of their life. Though no one ever seemed to believe their story, they—Renjun excitedly, Donghyuck trying to be a calming figure—would recount it across a lifetime of love.

Renjun would never catch a glimpse of the shop again, but a presence seemed to fall over their shoulders at important events—weddings, adoptions, all that he held dear to his heart. The disco tune that blared would remain stuck in his head for years to come.

He tied the word ‘fate’ to their invisible string.

**Author's Note:**

> i just realized this is my second year in a row writing renhyuck xmas ! i think i might just make it a tradition :)
> 
> for [souzu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/souzu/): your prompts were so cute; i combined prompt 2 + 3 into this cute little renhyuck xmas/cafe story...i hope you enjoyed it!!! :)
> 
> ive been addicted recently to added magical details to my stories-- don't really know why, other than the fact to think of the impossible happening is just... nice. it takes time out of my inability to process how much is going in the real world hah
> 
> i hope you're having a wonderful day :)
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/dreamjuns) || [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/drmroses)


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